Club celebrates its best year at awards evening
BURTON Athletics Club celebrated their best season at their awards evening at Pirelli Stadium, with East Staffordshire’s mayor and mayoress, Phil and Karen Hudson, presenting the prizes.
The awards recognised a strong season which had seen two long jump medals won at the English Schools Championships and 70 club records broken.
Ten athletes were selected to take part in the English Schools Track and Field Championships and 11 selected for the English Schools Cross Country Championships, the highest numbers to date, while the club also had many athletes in the top 10 rankings in age groups for their events.
The athlete of the season prize was shared by under-17s Kaiden Ramsay and Isabelle Fellows.
Ramsey won bronze for long jump at the English Schools, was ranked fourth in the UK and also took the club’s jumps trophy.
Fellows also competed in the English Schools and English championships, broke a club record and was ranked fourth in the javelin, also earning her the club’s highest ranked female award.
Sprint hurdler Katie Brant took the “record breaker” under-17 athlete of the year for her performances. Nathan Mugoti won the under-15 boys’ award and the highest-ranked boy prize, as he sat second in the UK for his age after taking silver in the long jump at the English Schools.
Isla Swidlehurst took the under-15 girls’ award after a fine season and a club record.
Isabelle Gould was named Most Improved Athlete, going from starting hammer throwing only a year ago to reaching the English Schools this year.
Joel Cantrill took the training award and the endurance trophy went to Maisie Trueman, who set three club records and is the fastest female of all time at the club over 800m, 1500m and 3000m. She also picked up the Parkrun, female and highest age graded trophies.
The throws trophy went to Zara Acton, who again set multiple club records during the year and is moving up the senior rankings. Harry Handsaker took the sprints trophy.
Paige Barker won the female cross-country award after taking part in her third consecutive English Schools cross-country championships. Owen Morgan took the male award for gaining two Staffordshire vests.
Caitlin Mccarney took the Martyn Naughton Trophy as highest finisher in the English National cross-country and also the Winter League trophy
for her consistent season.
Callum Abberley picked up the male parkrun award and the road race trophy.
A surprise award went to chairman Jaime Walker, collecting the Mike Kelsall Fun Run award for showing a thrower could run – he ran a half-marathon this year.
In the younger age groups, the under-11 awards went to Amelie
Cawson and James Rose and the under-13s to Chelsea Bogdanova and Morgan Fletcher. The under-17 boys award winner was Lewis de Rosa; under-20s prizes went to Fran Sharpe and Jamal Webb and senior awards to Ben Acton and Jenna Galizewski.
Group training awards went to Saffron Bowley (endurance), Andrew Humphries (senior sprints),
Joe Mills (development), Alice Tyler (sprints) and Rachel Burke (throws).
Jack Poxon was veteran of the year and Masters record breakers awards went to Clair Zawada and Paul Edwards, while the highest-ranked veterans’ prizes went to Brian Bowley and Judy Kelsall.
Inducted into the club’s hall of fame and given lifetime membership were Glenys Williams and Graham Lamb. Williams has been a key volunteer for many years, looking after the new members development group, while Lamb, a member for 40 years, is endurance coach and vets and cross-country manager, still competes and puts a great deal of effort into the club’s publicity.
The coach of the year prize went to Keith Morant, who had coached both Mugoti and Ramsey in their successful seasons.
The chairman’s award went to Jackie Acton, who has been a driving force in the club to improve facilities and maintain finances. Magdalena Tutt’s unstinting help at events earned her the service award and official of the year went to Angela Fellows.